I’ve been thinking lately about God, assuming He exists. Mainly, I’ve been thinking about the Judeo-Christian biblical conception of God, and asking myself, crazy as this sounds, if He exists, Is God a sociopath?
I pose this question seriously, and apologize in advance for offending anyone by probing this idea. But consider:
You are expected to worship Him.
You are expected to acknowledge His perfection.
You are expected to live by His standards.
You are expected to fear His Judgement.
You are expected to please, not disappoint Him.
You are expected to do penance when you’ve strayed from His rules.
You are expected to be in awe of, and fear, His omniscience.
You are expected to be in awe of, and fear, His omnipotence.
You are expected to prize His love, and fear His wrath.
You are expected to seek, and follow, His guidance.
When He feels unheeded, He licenses Himself to unleash cruel, violent, devastating rages (see the Flood, among countless other examples).
He is a punisher.
He is perfect.
He has no guilt; yet He instills guilt.
He “made,” and he “works,” the world and universe from “above,” sitting in Judgement of all who deviate from Him.
He is infallible.
He is unaccountable.
He is callous—a cause of, and silent witness to, untold violence and suffering in the history of humanity.
He is “entitled—”to judge, and punish, as He likes.
He is controlling to a highly pathological degree, for all the reasons stated above.
He is merciful, so long as you heed Him. Otherwise, He can be merciless.
He expects to be idealized and treated like a God.
He rages, and inflicts the cruelest of punishments, when He feels defied.
His word is the bible.
Now you tell me: If I were describing a human being in these terms, what conclusion would you draw? I suspect, if you weren’t feeling defensive, that you’d conclude that we’re talking about someone with a case of seriously malignant narcissism edging, perhaps, into the realm of sociopathy?
But, of course, I’m describing the Judeo-Christian God.
Think about this: from the earliest age, this is your almighty Father figure. You are taught to worship Him, seek His love, His mercy, accept His perfection and infallibility.
You are taught that His word is final; His wrath is justified; to feel shame before His eyes.
You are taught to have to work hard to earn your way back into His good graces, and to be grateful for His forgiveness.
His judgement is final, and even terrifying.
Now if this is the Father figure we’ve been raised to heed and idealize from birth, is it not fair to wonder how much this relationship—with God—might predispose us to end up with a sociopath?
Does one’s adult relationship with a sociopath not replicate, in certain ways, one’s relationship with God?
I pose this as food for thought, nothing else. But I will follow-up this post in the next several weeks, to further flesh out my thoughts, factoring in, as well, your initial feedback.
(This article is copyrighted (c) 2010 by Steve Becker, LCSW.)
“If absolute power corrupts absolutely, where does that leave God?” George Deacon
hens,
I think you “get it”. Its about corn on the cob and maybe even pork chops and as much or more “y’all c’mon over”.
Life gets that simple when you have come past all the E Ticket crap about childhood and love relationships based on the false teachings of a dysfunctional one. Thanks Hens for the clarity of your voice in a high static transmission…
I’ll see your ears of corn and raise you a peach, pecan, spinach and poppy seed dressing salad with a dutch oven full of steaming batterbread dressed with Amish hand rolled butter.
Who’s bringing desert?
Steve, I found your article intriguing, to say the least and thank you for your courage in posting it.
For me, “religion,” as an organized form of worship, is man-made. Rituals, doctrines, and the rest of it is typically formulated by human beings and the Truth of enjoying a personal connection with the Great Creator, God, Yahweh, Bhudda, or Whomever, is dependent solely upon whether we accept these doctrines and rituals as “right.” Man-made religions are, in essence, based upon what human beings consider to be acceptable OR based upon measures of control, in my very personal opinion.
My view of God is that he/she/it only wants for human beings to seek their true positive potential and to DO NO HARM along the way – thank goodness for conscience! In my view, this diety doesn’t demand war (even a holy war), hatred, exclusion, bigotry, or the other incredible negatives that I’ve personally experienced via organized religions. My very, very personal experiences with God have taught me that he/she/it wants me to THINK for myself and make decisions based upon what I’ve learned or experienced. I don’t believe that things have been thrown into my path to “make me stronger” or “make me wiser.” My choices are simply that: my choices. The results of those choices can be positive, negative, or seemingly benign, and have nothing to do with a Higher Power interested in seeing me suffer, either physically or emotionally.
The only “religion” that I’ve ever experienced that was profound and positive was a Quaker worship meeting – everyone was silent for 45 minutes unless someone was “moved” to speak about their personal experiences. There was nobody standing elevated in a pulpit, instructing others on how to enter Heaven. There was nobody chastising others for stupid decisions or choices. There was NOBODY suggesting that “God” strikes people down with tragedy to get their attention or teach them a lesson. There was nobody telling anyone else that, if they didn’t do and/or believe specific Things, they would be denied entrance into Heaven. At first, the silence was unnerving – but, after I had settled into it, my thoughts began to turn inwards towards my goals, my accomplishments, what I’d learned, what I still needed to learn, and where I needed to put my energies in a positive manner. This personal solitude was being shared, simultaneously, by all the people gathered there, and each person was (or, wasn’t) doing the same thing. It became a very personal communing with my inner Self and what I perceived to be God’s positive suggestions. Afterwards, there was NO discussion of our “quiet time.” The children offered a study of Tibetan prayer flags, their meaning, and their use, and it was amazing to hear one “religion” being taught by another as acceptable and meaningful. To clarify, I am not a Quaker or a member of any other organized religion – I’m still searching and learning.
I’m not espousing or condemning ANY organization, religion, ritual, or doctrine that brings comfort and/or peace to another human being. What I am trying to say here is that interpretation and doctrinal development is finalized by human beings. Yes, some elders or leaders may be “inspired” by a Higher Power, but it ultimately comes down to human beings setting forth THEIR rules and rituals and not encouraging a personal, individual relationship (?) with God.
If we truly perceive God to be the ultimate sociopath, perhaps, we may need to look at where those demands and attributes CAME from. Certainly, the visual that human beings have of God run the gamut from benevolent to cruel, but where did these varying doctrines stem from? Simply put, it is human interpretation (for good OR for ill) that is solely responsible for viewing God as the ultimate sociopath, in my most humble opinion.
With Bhuddism being described as the destruction of the Self, I tend to disagree with that. My view is that it’s the deCONSTRUCTION of the Self to renew and rebuild the Self in such a manner that the Self is integral to the world and the universe – the whole of everything (from clouds to a super nova) is more important than the needs or, specifically, the WANTS of the Self. That’s just my personal view.
Brightest blessings!
This article is nothing about what God is.. It is a total distortion from a mind that can’t see.
God is inside each of us and we hold ourselves accountable, live ‘right’ and you feel good – live wrong and you live in fear and distortion.
I can see how the writer came up with this.. but it is so off in the truth of it that I don’t know what to say…
It’s man interrpretation that leads to these misconceptions.
God is love, pure love for us and has nothing to do with being in a relationsihp with a psychopath.
Although, being in a psycho relationship can turn some to God for healing…
It’s our internal moral adjuster that guides us if we can truly listen.. and also, being in pain can brake us open to listen.
http://www.womenexplode.com
Style1, that’s what I was saying. God said he created us in His image (meaning, man/woman can and will do anything if left to his/her own devices). Hence, Jesus came in human form to instill the need for men and women to focus on His spiritual teachings so they can transcend the evils of the carnal mindset … aka live carnally which means to live in sin, and you will die (spiritual die) and you end up not only killing your own spirit, but killing the spirits of all those around you. Learn to live spiritually (meaning to read, comprehend and abide in His teachings) and you truly live … (spiritually live) … flourish, be happy, content, peace of mind, all accepting, loving unconditionally, no need to manipulate others by lying and cheating, you can just do for yourself, with honesty (truth) with no jealousy, no revenge, do no harm to others as you would not want them to do unto you).
I believe and trust that the scriptures were written by man, divinely inspired by God to tell us the truth … that without faith in Him, man and women can and will do all types of evil (that’s why Steve was able to list them). To fear not what man can do to you, fear (meaning be in awe of who created your very soul) … don’t take evil into your own hands … because you then become just as evil of that you are rebuking … leave justice and vengeance up to Him on His time frame (that’s why He tells us to stay focused on being humble), not our time frame.
It’s all a matter of practice. The more you read scriptures, the more wisdom (truth) is unveiled, the more your mind is transformed spiritually to think, act and become alive in His truth for His children.
Amen.
Hello all, Have not had time to read all the posts, but wondering if we could take an informal poll.
How many of us have had a daddy a lot like the GOD that Steve described? One who assumed that kind of authority? Just asking.
Can we add Chocolate bread pudding with a bourbon custard glaze…..served with a glass of ice cold milk!
I have read books and/or done internet searches about people who have had Near Death Experiences (NDEs), finding what others have experienced interesting, causing me to conclude that there is an afterlife, most people having similar stories – our souls leave our bodies and go to…? Many people who have died had an encounter with God, describing Him as loving, causing them not to fear death (when that occurred again, later in their earthly life). What others have experienced after dying is telling, letting us know that there is more beyond this earthly existence.
?
I have had a near-death experience and had other occurences in my life to know that there is a God of pure love for us.
I have studied religions for years.. I do not believe that organized religion is so good.. you can take any pure thought and have it corrupted.
I believe in Jesus Christ.
And many times, children think God is like their parents treat them.
Parents play such an important role in everything.. perceptions, imprints..
It is all so complex.. and our understanding on Earth is not total..
someday, we will know …
now we are living, learning and searching..
but it is Jesus and God’s love for me that had lifted me through many dark nights of the soul…
and while reading passages in the Bible is comforting..
It is an inner knowing that guides me..
http://www.womenexplode.com